The present invention relates to computer graphics animation and, more particularly, to a technique of communicating, between computers, computer graphics animation data including a case where motion of an multi-joint object or an elastic object, such as a human being or an animal, is described as time series data, and generating a computer graphics animation image in a client computer.
In recent years, multimedia communications via internet have been extensively carried on. In multimedia communications, World-Wide-Web (WWW) constitutes a main frame. This is described by Ryusuke Masuoka and Keisuke Kobabukuro in xe2x80x9cWorld-Wide-Webxe2x80x9d, Journal of Information Processing Society, pp.1155-1165, Vol.36, No.12, 1995.
According to this publication, main conceptions of WWW are URL (Uniform Resource Locator), HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol), HTML (HyperText Markup Language), and CGI (Common Gateway Interface).
URL is a notation for uniformly describing various resources on the internet. HTTP is a protocol for performing communication between a WWW client and a WWW server. HTML is a descriptive language for describing a hypertext. CGI is an arrangement of a manner for exchanging a command between the WWW client and the WWW server.
A description is given of a construction according to these conceptions. The WWW client obtains information specified by URL from the WWW server through the internet, using HTTP, as an HTML document, and displays it on a screen using a display program called xe2x80x98browserxe2x80x99. When the user selects a link on the screen, a URL corresponding to the link is specified, and information specified in the URL is obtained from the linked WWW server through the internet, using HTTP, as an HTML document, and the HTML document is displayed on the screen. The above is the fundamental operation. Further, when xe2x80x9cGET/cig-bin/command/pathHTTP/1.0xe2x80x9d is requested to the WWW server, using HTTP, by CGI, xe2x80x9c/pathxe2x80x9d is set in an environment variable xe2x80x9cPATH_INFOxe2x80x9d in the WWW server, and xe2x80x9ccommandxe2x80x9d is executed. It is possible to return a result output to the standard output after execution of xe2x80x9ccommandxe2x80x9d, as data, to the WWW client. WWW so constructed takes a leading role in multimedia communications.
However, since the above-mentioned HTML provides only a descriptive specification relating to a two-dimensional image, it cannot handle three-dimensional computer graphics. In the circumstances, as an extension of HTML, a specification of VRML (Virtual Reality Modeling Language), which is a descriptive language for describing three-dimensional computer graphics, was decided on May, 1995.
This is described in detail by Mark Peace in xe2x80x9cVRML-Browsing and Building Cyberspacexe2x80x9d, New Riders Publishing, 1995. The operation using VRML is fundamentally identical to the above-mentioned operation using HTML and, in place of the HTML document, data described by VRML is obtained as information specified by URL.
Further, a special program is needed to display data described by VRML. On a displayed three-dimensional computer graphics image, although a view point can be changed, since VRML descriptive specification (Version 1.0) does not have a specification for moving an object, the displayed object is absolutely static.
Under the circumstances mentioned above, methods for communicating and exchanging three-dimensional computer graphics animation data between computers and displaying the data at the client""s end have been proposed. For example, Microsoft Corporation in U.S.A. proposed a method using Active VRML.
Active VRML is described in xe2x80x9cMicrosoft Corporation, xe2x80x98Active VRML Reference Manualxe2x80x99, Preliminary Version, 1995xe2x80x9d and in xe2x80x9cMicrosoft Corporation, xe2x80x98A Brief Introduction to Active VRMLxe2x80x99, 1995xe2x80x9d.
However, in these methods, although it is possible to communicate and exchange data between computers and display the data as a three-dimensional computer graphics animation image at the client""s end, it is very difficult to realize three-dimensional computer graphics animation capable of processing and realistically regenerating a complicated motion of an animal, such as a human being, an expression of a face, a motion of an object obtained as a result of a complicated physical calculation, and a complicated motion of a camera or a light source. It is very difficult to represent these motions realistically with a function system. Even if it is possible, a calculation taking considerable time is required.
Further, since, in Active VRML and VRML, only an ocellar image is supported, a binocular stereoscopic image cannot be generated.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for communicating computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer, and for generating, in the client computer, a computer graphics animation image of a complicated motion, for example, a complicated motion of an animal, such as a human being, an expression of a face, a motion of an object obtained as a result of a complicated physical calculation, or a complicated motion of a camera or a light source.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the detailed description that follows. The detailed description and specific embodiments described are provided only for illustration since various additions and modifications within the scope of the invention will be apparent to those of skill in the art from the detailed description.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer and generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising configuration data of an object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, and time series motion data for generating a motion of the object corresponding to the behavior of the object in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the transmitted animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; and fourth stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics animation image on a display unit.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising configuration data of an object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, and time series motion data for generating a motion of the object corresponding to the behavior of the object in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the plural client computers; third stage of storing the transmitted animation data in storage units of the plural client computers; and fourth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, rendering on the basis of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computers, and displaying a computer graphics animation image on a display unit.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising configuration data of an object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule of the object, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the object corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the transmitted animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; fourth stage of generating, in the client computer, motion of the object while connecting the time series basic motion data on the basis of the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer; and fifth stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics animation image on a display unit.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising configuration data of an object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule of the object, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the object corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the plural client computers; third stage of storing the transmitted animation data in storage units of the plural client computers; fourth stage of generating, in the plural client computers, motion of the object while connecting the time series basic motion data on the basis of the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each server computer; and fifth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, rendering on the basis of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer, and displaying a computer graphics animation image on a display unit.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data to be bound to the skeletal structure, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, and time series motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; fourth stage of performing, in the client computer, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; fifth stage of calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at a certain time from the time series motion data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, in the client computer; sixth stage of performing binding of the configuration data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, in accordance with the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the fifth stage, in the client computer; seventh stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth, sixth, and seventh stages being repeated in the client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data to be bound to the skeletal structure, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, and time series motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the plural client computers; third stage of storing the animation data in storage units of the plural client computers; fourth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; fifth stage of calculating, in each client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at a certain time from the time series motion data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; sixth stage of performing, in each client computer, binding of the configuration data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer, in accordance with the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the fifth stage; seventh stage of performing, in each client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth, sixth, and seventh stages being repeated in each client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, and time series motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; fourth stage of performing, in the client computer, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; fifth stage of calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at a certain time from the time series motion data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, in the client computer; sixth stage of generating a surface of the object according to the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the fifth stage, in the client computer; seventh stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth, sixth, and seventh stages being repeated in the client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, and time series motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the plural client computers; third stage of storing the animation data in storage units of the plural client computers; fourth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; fifth stage of calculating, in each client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at a certain time from the time series motion data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; sixth stage of generating, in each client computer, a surface of the object according to the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the fifth stage; seventh stage of performing, in each client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth, sixth, and seventh stages being repeated in each client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data to be bound to the skeletal structure, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule of the object, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; fourth stage of performing, in the client computer, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; fifth stage of judging, in the client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the fifth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, sixth stage of calculating, in the client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the time series basic motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and corresponds to the basic behavior at said time; when it is judged in the fifth stage that said time is within the connecting period, seventh stage of calculating, in the client computer, a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; eighth stage of performing, in the client computer, binding of the configuration data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, in accordance with the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the sixth stage or the seventh stage; ninth stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth or seventh stage, said eighth stage, and said ninth stage being repeated in the client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data to be bound to the skeletal structure, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule of the object, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the plural client computers; third stage of storing the animation data in storage units of the plural client computers; fourth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; fifth stage of judging, in each client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the fifth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, sixth stage of calculating, in each client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the time series basic motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and corresponds to the basic behavior at said time; when it is judged in the fifth stage that said time is within the connecting period, seventh stage of calculating, in each client computer, a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; eighth stage of performing, in each client computer, binding of the configuration data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, in accordance with the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the sixth stage or the seventh stage; ninth stage of performing, in each client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth or seventh stage, said eighth stage, and said ninth stage being repeated in each client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule of the object, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; fourth stage of performing, in the client computer, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; fifth stage of judging, in the client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the fifth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, sixth stage of calculating, in the client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the time series basic motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and corresponds to the basic behavior at said time; when it is judged in the fifth stage that said time is within the connecting period, seventh stage of calculating, in the client computer, a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; eighth stage of generating, in the client computer, a surface of the object according to the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the sixth stage or the seventh stage; ninth stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth or seventh stage, said eighth stage, and said ninth stage being repeated in the client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule of the object, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the client computers; third stage of storing the animation data in storage units of the plural client computers; fourth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; fifth stage of judging, in each client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the fifth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, sixth stage of calculating, in each client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the time series basic motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and corresponds to the basic behavior at said time; when it is judged in the fifth stage that said time is within the connecting period, seventh stage of calculating, in each client computer, a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; eighth stage of generating, in each client computer, a surface of the object according to the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the sixth stage or the seventh stage; ninth stage of performing, in each client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth or seventh stage, said eighth stage, and said ninth stage being repeated in each client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data to be bound to the skeletal structure, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; fourth stage of performing, in the client computer, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in the client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in the client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of calculating, in the client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the time series basic motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and corresponds to the basic behavior at said time; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of calculating, in the client computer, a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of performing, in the client computer, binding of the configuration data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, in accordance with the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh stage or the eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in the client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data to be bound to the skeletal structure, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the client computers; third stage of storing the animation data in storage units of the client computers; fourth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in each client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in each client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of calculating, in each client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the time series basic motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and corresponds to the basic behavior at said time; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of calculating, in each client computer, a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of performing, in each client computer, binding of the configuration data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, in accordance with the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh stage or the eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in each client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in each client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; fourth stage of performing, in the client computer, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in the client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in the client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of calculating, in the client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the time series basic motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and corresponds to the basic behavior at said time; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of calculating, in the client computer, a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of generating, in the client computer, a surface of the object according to the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh stage or the eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in the client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the client computers; third stage of storing the animation data in storage units of the plural client computers; fourth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in each client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in each client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of calculating, in each client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the time series basic motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and corresponds to the basic behavior at said time; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of calculating, in each client computer, a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of generating, in each client computer, a surface of the object according to the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh stage or the eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in each client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in each client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
comprises
According to a seventeenth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data to be bound to the skeletal structure, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; fourth stage of performing, in the client computer, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in the client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in the client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of discriminating the environmental state condition within a period of time during which the basic behavior is performed, by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, changing the time series basic motion data corresponding to the basic behavior according to the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the changed time series basic motion data; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of discriminating the environmental state condition during the connecting period, according to the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and the environment managing and controlling method, calculating a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of performing, in the client computer, binding of the configuration data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, in accordance with the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh or eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in the client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to an eighteenth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data to be bound to the skeletal structure, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the client computers; third stage of storing the animation data in storage units of the plural client computers; fourth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in each client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in each client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of discriminating the environmental state condition within a period of time during which the basic behavior is performed, by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer, changing the time series basic motion data corresponding to the basic behavior according to the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the changed time series basic motion data; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of discriminating the environmental state condition during the connecting period, according to the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and the environment managing and controlling method, calculating a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of performing, in each client computer, binding of the configuration data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, in accordance with the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh or eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in each client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in each client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a nineteenth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; fourth stage of performing, in the client computer, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in the client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in the client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of discriminating the environmental state condition within a period of time during which the basic behavior is performed, by the environment managing and controlling method of animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, changing the time series basic motion data corresponding to the basic behavior according to the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the changed time series basic motion data; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of discriminating the environmental state condition during the connecting period, according to the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and the environment managing and controlling method, calculating a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of generating, in the client computer, a surface of the object according to the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh or eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in the client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a twentieth aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data performs transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers and relating to generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and the method comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the client computers; third stage of storing the animation data in storage units of the plural client computers; fourth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in each client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in each client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of discriminating the environmental state condition within a period of time during which the basic behavior is performed, by the environment managing and controlling method of animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer, changing the time series basic motion data corresponding to the basic behavior according to the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the changed time series basic motion data; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of discriminating the environmental state condition during the connecting period, according to the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and the environment managing and controlling method, calculating a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of generating, in each client computer, a surface of the object according to the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh or eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in each client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in each client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a twenty-first aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data, move of view point of image generation, change in view direction, and change in view angle are described as the time series motion data, and the view point of image generation, the view direction, and the view angle are changed according to the time series motion data.
According to a twenty-second aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data, move of view point of image generation, change in view direction, and change in view angle are described as the time series basic motion data, and the view point of image generation, the view direction, and the view angle are changed while connecting the time series basic motion data.
According to a twenty-third aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data, binocular parallax and binocular view direction are specified, and a computer graphics animation image is generated stereoscopically on the basis of the binocular parallax and the binocular view direction.
According to a twenty-fourth aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data, move of light source, change in intensity of light source, change in direction of light beam, and change in extension of light beam are described as the time series motion data, and the position of light source, the intensity of light source, the direction of light beam, and the extension of light beam are changed according to the time series motion data.
According to a twenty-fifth aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data, move of light source, change in intensity of light source, change in direction of light beam, and change in extension of light beam are described as the time series basic motion data, and the position of light source, the intensity of light source, the direction of light beam, and the extension of light beam are changed while connecting the time series basic motion data.
According to a twenty-sixth aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data, when two time series basic motion data, i.e., previous basic motion data and rear basic motion data, are connected, this connection is performed by the steps of: specifying a connecting period of time (frame number); generating a backward prediction curve in the connecting period, for the previous basic motion data; generating a forward prediction curve in the connecting period, for the rear basic motion data; and using a connection weighting function which is differentiable in respect of time, monotonically decreasing, and becomes 1 at the connection start time and 0 at the connection end time, obtaining the product of the backward prediction curve and the connection weighting function, and the product of the forward prediction curve and a result of subtracting the connection weighting function from 1, and generating a motion of the connection between the previous basic motion data and the rear basic motion data from the sum of these products.
According to a twenty-seventh aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned method for communicating and generating computer graphics animation data, when two time series basic motion data, i.e., previous basic motion data and subsequent basic motion data, are connected, this connection is performed by the steps of: specifying a connecting period of time (frame number); generating a backward prediction curve in the connecting period, for the previous basic motion data; generating a forward prediction curve in the connecting period, for the subsequent basic motion data; and using a connection weighting function which is differentiable in respect of time, monotonically increasing, and becomes 1 at the connection start time and 0 at the connection end time, obtaining the product of the backward prediction curve and a result of subtracting the connection weighting function from 1, and the product of the forward prediction curve and the connection weighting function, and generating a motion of the connection between the previous basic motion data and the subsequent basic motion data from the sum of these products.
According to a twenty-eighth aspect of the present invention, a recording medium contains a program for performing transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer, and generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and a procedure described in this program comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule of the object, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; fourth stage of performing, in the client computer, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; fifth stage of judging, in the client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the fifth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, sixth stage of calculating, in the client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the time series basic motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and corresponds to the basic behavior at said time; when it is judged in the fifth stage that said time is within the connecting period, seventh stage of calculating, in the client computer, a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; eighth stage of generating, in the client computer, a surface of the object according to the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the sixth stage or the seventh stage; ninth stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth or seventh stage, said eighth stage, and said ninth stage being repeated in the client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a twenty-ninth aspect of the present invention, a recording medium contains a program for performing transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers, and generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and a procedure described in this program comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule of the object, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the client computers; third stage of storing the animation data in storage units of the plural client computers; fourth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; fifth stage of judging, in each client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the fifth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, sixth stage of calculating, in each client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the time series basic motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and corresponds to the basic behavior at said time; when it is judged in the fifth stage that said time is within the connecting period, seventh stage of calculating, in each client computer, a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; eighth stage of generating, in each client computer, a surface of the object according to the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the sixth stage or the seventh stage; ninth stage of performing, in each client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth or seventh stage, said eighth stage, and said ninth stage being repeated in each client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a thirtieth aspect of the present invention, a recording medium contains a program for performing transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer, and generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and a procedure described in this program comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data to be bound to the skeletal structure, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; fourth stage of performing, in the client computer, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in the client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in the client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of calculating, in the client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the time series basic motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and corresponds to the basic behavior at said time; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of calculating, in the client computer, a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of performing, in the client computer, binding of the configuration data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, in accordance with the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh stage or the eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in the client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a thirty-first aspect of the present invention, a recording medium contains a program for performing transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers, and generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and a procedure described in this program comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data to be bound to the skeletal structure, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the client computers; third stage of storing the animation data in storage units of the client computers; fourth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in each client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in each client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of calculating, in each client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the time series basic motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and corresponds to the basic behavior at said time; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of calculating, in each client computer, a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of performing, in each client computer, binding of the configuration data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, in accordance with the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh stage or the eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in each client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in each client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a thirty-second aspect of the present invention, a recording medium contains a program for performing transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer, and generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and a procedure described in this program comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; fourth stage of performing, in the client computer, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in the client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in the client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of calculating, in the client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the time series basic motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and corresponds to the basic behavior at said time; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of calculating, in the client computer, a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of generating, in the client computer, a surface of the object according to the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh stage or the eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in the client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a thirty-third aspect of the present invention, a recording medium contains a program for performing transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers, and generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and a procedure described in this program comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the client computers; third stage of storing the animation data in storage units of the plural client computers; fourth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in each client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in each client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of calculating, in each client computer, a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the time series basic motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and corresponds to the basic behavior at said time; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of calculating, in each client computer, a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of generating, in each client computer, a surface of the object according to the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh stage or the eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in each client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in each client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a thirty-fourth aspect of the present invention, a recording medium contains a program for performing transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer, and generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and a procedure described in this program comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data to be bound to the skeletal structure, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; fourth stage of performing, in the client computer, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in the client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in the client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of discriminating the environmental state condition within a period of time during which the basic behavior is performed, by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, changing the time series basic motion data corresponding to the basic behavior according to the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the changed time series basic motion data; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of discriminating the environmental state condition during the connecting period, according to the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and the environment managing and controlling method, calculating a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of performing, in the client computer, binding of the configuration data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, in accordance with the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh or eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in the client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a thirty-fifth aspect of the present invention, a recording medium contains a program for performing transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers, and generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and a procedure described in this program comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data to be bound to the skeletal structure, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the client computers; third stage of storing the animation data in storage units of the plural client computers; fourth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in each client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in each client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of discriminating the environmental state condition within a period of time during which the basic behavior is performed, by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer, changing the time series basic motion data corresponding to the basic behavior according to the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the changed time series basic motion data; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of discriminating the environmental state condition during the connecting period, according to the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and the environment managing and controlling method, calculating a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of performing, in each client computer, binding of the configuration data of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, in accordance with the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh or eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in each client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in each client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a thirty-sixth aspect of the present invention, a recording medium contains a program for performing transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, a client computer, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the client computer, and generation of a computer graphics animation image in the client computer, and a procedure described in this program comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to a request for transmission from the client computer, from the server computer to the client computer; third stage of storing the animation data in a storage unit of the client computer; fourth stage of performing, in the client computer, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in the client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in the client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of discriminating the environmental state condition within a period of time during which the basic behavior is performed, by the environment managing and controlling method of animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, changing the time series basic motion data corresponding to the basic behavior according to the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the changed time series basic motion data; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of discriminating the environmental state condition during the connecting period, according to the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and the environment managing and controlling method, calculating a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of generating, in the client computer, a surface of the object according to the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh or eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in the client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in the client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.
According to a thirty-seventh aspect of the present invention, a recording medium contains a program for performing transmission and reception of computer graphics animation data in a system comprising a server computer, plural client computers, and a communication mediating means between the server computer and the plural client computers, and generation of a computer graphics animation image in each client computer, and a procedure described in this program comprises the following stages: first stage of performing, in the server computer, formation and edition of animation data comprising a skeletal structure of an articulate object, configuration data of an environment where the object exists, attribute data, light source data, camera parameters, shading method, environment setting, environment managing and controlling method, basic behavior of the object, behavior rule showing state transition of behavior of the object against generation of event, and time series basic motion data for generating a motion of the skeletal structure corresponding to the basic behavior in a time series, and storing the animation data in a storage unit; second stage of transmitting the animation data stored in the storage unit of the server computer, in response to requests for transmission from the plural client computers, from the server computer to the client computers; third stage of storing the animation data in storage units of the plural client computers; fourth stage of performing, in the plural client computers, initial arrangement of the environment configuration data on the basis of the environment setting of the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer; fifth stage of detecting, in each client computer, generation of event by the environment managing and controlling method of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and deciding state transition of basic behavior against the generation of event, according to the behavior rule; sixth stage of judging, in each client computer, whether a certain time is within a basic behavior period or within a connecting period, from the behavior rule of the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the basic behavior period, seventh stage of discriminating the environmental state condition within a period of time during which the basic behavior is performed, by the environment managing and controlling method of animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer, changing the time series basic motion data corresponding to the basic behavior according to the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time from the changed time series basic motion data; when it is judged in the sixth stage that said time is within the connecting period, eighth stage of discriminating the environmental state condition during the connecting period, according to the time series motion data which is included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of each client computer and exists before and after the connecting period, and the environment managing and controlling method, calculating a motion of the skeletal structure during the connecting period from the result of the discrimination, and calculating a position and a shape of the skeletal structure at said time; ninth stage of generating, in each client computer, a surface of the object according to the position and the shape of the skeletal structure obtained in the seventh or eighth stage; tenth stage of performing, in each client computer, rendering on the basis of the position of the light source, the light source data, the position of the camera, and the camera parameters, at said time, and the attribute data and the shading method included in the animation data stored in the storage unit of the client computer, and displaying a computer graphics image on a display unit; and said fifth stage, said sixth stage, said seventh or eighth stage, said ninth stage, and said tenth stage being repeated in each client computer until an end instruction is ordered, thereby generating computer graphics animation.